Privatizing state utilities gives more environmental headaches, solon warnsGov't troubled by slow NAPOCOR clean-up of Semirara,what more if NAPOCOR is hogged by irresponsible foreign companies?

Making a bid against the privatization of the power industry, Anakpawis Rep.Crispin Beltran said today that even the Semirara oil spill could illustratethe "environmental headaches to come if the Philippines' basic industriesare left open to foreign control and ownership".

"Now that one of the biggest oil spills ever in Philippine waters is beingcleaned at a snail's pace by the state power corporation, the Philippinegovernment should imagine and reconsider how much more environmental andfinancial damage could result in a similar situation where state-runcompanies such as NAPOCOR are privatized and put into the hands of foreignmultinational companies (MNCs)," Beltran said.

A National Power Corporation (NAPOCOR) barge ran aground last month,spilling around 180,000 liters of bunker fuel on 236 hectares of mangroves,posing a threat to at least 40 sq. km of Semirara's marine life and at least2,000 seaweed farmers and fisherfolk in the area.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported this week hat only around sixpercent of the affected area has been cleaned up since the Dec. 18, 2005accident. NAPOCOR is required to fund and undertake the cleanup operation.

"We are already apprehensive over the NAPOCOR's slow-paced and severelyundermanned clean-up of Semirara. Would another oil spill of a similarmagnitude as this be given enough attention if the accountable state-runbodies such NAPOCOR are to be fully privatized and controlled byirresponsible foreign MNCs that have a record of environmental degradationat the time of any accident? Kung sa atin pa lang ay hirap na hirap tayongipatupad ang batas, paano pa kaya kung mapasakamay ang industriya ngkuryente ng dayuhang kumpanya? " he asked.

"Environmentalists, the Philippine Coast Guard, and solons from Lower Houseand Senate are already expressing alarm over the situation. But it will beeven more difficult for the Philippine government to ensure environmentalprotection and justice for any untoward environmental accidents if these arecaused by foreign MNCs in the future, precisely because these entities arenot beholden in any way to us and are in fact, being welcomed by anadministration that can't wait to throw national sovereignty and patrimonyout of the window via Charter Change," he warned.

The activist lawmaker cited the case of the Exxon Valdez spill of 11 milliongallons of crude oil along the Alaska coast in March 1989. Sixteen yearslater, Exxon Mobil Corporation still refuses to comply with a 1994 Anchoragefederal jury ruling ordering the company to pay $5.3 billion in compensationto around 34,000 affected people.

"If companies like Exxon have the temerity to ignore and violate rulingsright in their own territories for decades, how much more in a country likethe Philippines which they would view as an extension of their investmentsand corporate playing fields? It's all too easy for such moneyed entities toescape accountability and litigation if ever another disaster with theproportions of the Semirara oil spill should occur again in the country" theactivist solon asked.

"We really hope that something like the Exxon case this never happens here,but the possibility lingers that foreign MNC privatization of basicindustries and utilities will ignore the impact on local ecosystems andconsumers, and contribute to the long-term negative effects on theenvironment if they gain more ground on Philippine soil or waters," Beltransaid.

Beltran was referring to the current calls to privatize NAPOCOR and otherstate utilities through laws such as the Electric Power Industry Reform Act(EPIRA) signed by Pres. Arroyo in June 2001.

EPIRA aimed to privatize as much as 70% of these power utilities by 2004,but has so far been unsuccessful in fully attaining this goal due to therising opposition against the power industry's privatization, Beltransaid.

"It's good that we can still put the pressure on NAPOCOR to hasten theurgent clean-up. But this kind of commitment and accountability to theaffected area and residents threatens to be severed if our basic utilitiesare privatized according to Mrs. Arroyo's grand plan for the powerindustry," Beltran said.

After warning of the environmental implications of MNC privatization,Beltran added that "even the NAPOCOR's financial woes can be traced to theinfluence of foreign MNCs".

"In the first place, it was the NAPOCOR's onerous and inequitable contractswith so many independent power producers or IPPS that has led it to beheavily mired in billions-worth of debts. 22 out of these 41 IPPs areforeign-owned," he said.

"In addition to giving ample space, resources, and time to the Semiraraclean-up and mulling over legislation on marine pollution, Congress shouldalso devote more time to reviewing and repealing the national government'sprivatization plans for basic utilities, such as power and water. TheSemirara oil spill gives us a sneak preview of the devil we will be upagainst if we allow the privatization of basic utilities to proceed asplanned," Beltran ended. ###